Field of the Invention
The present application relates to an amplifying unit implementing a semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA).
Recent optical communication system often provides an optical amplifier to amplify a faint optical signal directly without converting into an electrical signal. One type of optical amplifiers installs a semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA). FIG. 14 is a functional diagram of an amplifying system including an amplifying unit 100 that installs an SOA therein. The amplifying unit 100 provides a housing 102 to enclose the SOA therein, and two optical fibers, 104 and 106, each extracted from the housing 102. One of the optical fibers 104 provides an optical connector 108 in an end thereof to couple optically with another optical connector 112. The other optical fiber 106 also provides an optical connector 114 in an end thereof to couple optically with another optical connector 120 secured in an end of another optical fiber 118 that extends from an optical unit, for instance, an optical receiver unit 116.
This arrangement around the amplifying unit 100, that is, the housing 102 with two optical fibers, 104 and 106, extracted therefrom, and respective optical connector, 108 and 114, makes the installation of the amplifying unit 100 in the optical apparatus complex and the handling of the optical fibers, 104 and 106, troublesome.